Fountain attachment for combs



July 28, 1953 B. 0| ZAZZO FOUNTAIN ATTACHMENT FOR COMES Filed Jan. 19, 1951 INVENT OR BENEDETTI DI Z4220 ATTORNEY Patented July 2 8, 1953 UNITED STATES .ATENT OFFlCE.

FOUNTAIN ATTACHMENT FOR GOMBS Benedetti Di Zazzo, Syracuse, N. Y.

Application January 19, 1951, Serial No. 206,834

Claims. 1

provide an improved fountain attachment which is especially adapted tobe demountably attached to the type of comb disclosed in my prior U. 5.

Patent No. 2,481,403 granted September 6, 1949,

for a barber comb.

A further object of the present invention is to provide an improved device of this character by the use of whichany kind of solution desired may be applied to the hair of the user, such as waving solutions, tinting solutions, oils, dye tonic dressings and perfumes.

A still further object of the present invention is to provide an improved structure with which the desired solution may be applied to the hair without the necessity of dipping the comb in the solution and without the use of cotton or the like and without the solution coming into contact with the hands of the person using the device so that the hands will remain clean and free at all times for performing other functions incident to the treatment of the hair.

Still another object of the present invention is the provision of a device of this type which can be efficiently used not only by skilled per sons, such as barbers, and operators of beauty parlors, but also by unskilled persons and even by children.

The present invention aims to provide an improved fountain attachment fcr combs which comprises relatively few parts, is economical to manufacture and is well balanced when positioned upon a comb.

In one of its broadest aspects the present invention contemplates the provision of an improved fountain attachment for a hair comb comprising a reservoir for a liquid and having outlet openings'for the liquid, and means for detachably mounting the reservoir on a hair comb.

More specifically the present invention con templates the provision of an improved fountain attachment for a hair comb comprising an elongated reservoir for a hair solution adapted to be detachably mounted on a hair comb and having a longitudinally extending substantially flat rear wall the upper portion of which is adapted to engage the adjacent face of the back of the comb and the remainder of which is adapted to ention extending rearwardly for engaging over I li pp'el edge Of the back of the comb and a portion extending downwardly from the rearwardly extending portion in spaced substantially parallel relation to the upper portion of said rear wall for clamping the comb therebetween, a pair of hooks depending from said rear wall for engaging over the free end portions of the teeth of the comb, said reservoir having a longitudi-nally extending substantially arcuate bottom wall which curves downwardly and rearwardly towards the lower edge of said rear wall, said bottom wall having a plurality of longitudinally spaced apart outlet openings positioned adjacent to the lower edge of said rear wall, a pair of guide members on the opposite end'portions'cf said bottom wall and spaced therefrom, a cover movably mounted between said guide members and saidbottom wall for masking and unmasking said outlet openings, a knob on said cover, stop means on said reservoir for limiting the movement of said cover, said reservoir having a substantially flat top wall upon which the reservoir is adapted to be supported when not in use, said top wall having an elongated filling aperture having one end opening through one end thereon and through one end wall ofv said reservoir, the opposite side walls of said aperture having guide grooves therein, and a closure for said aperture having ribs on its opposite sides to be received by said grooves, said closure having a portion at its inner end for extending below the-top of the reservoir and engaging the inner face of the area thereof adjacent the closed end of the aperture to prevent leaking of the solution between the inner end of the closure and the closed end of the aperture.

With the foregoing and other objects in view, the invention will be l'iereinafter more fully described and more particularly pointed out in the appended claims. 7

the drawings, in which the same parts are denoted by the same reference numerals throughout the several views, 7

Figure 1 isa front perspective view of the improved device constructed in accordance with the present invention and illustrated as applied to a hair comb,

Figure 2 is a fragmentary rear perspective view of the improved device with the closure for the filling aperture in a partially open position,

. Figure 3 is an enlarged fragmentary perspective viewof the'closure for the filling aperture, and

Figure 4 is asectional view taken on the line l -'4 of Figure i and looking in the direction'of the arrows.

Referring more particularly to the drawings,

It generally indicates the improved fountain attachment which may be applied to the conventional type of hair comb but in the present illustration is shown as mounted on a comb generally indicated as H of the construction disclosed in my prior U. S. Patent No. 2,481,403 mentioned above. Only the large end portion of the comb is shown, but as is well known in hair combs of this type the back or body 12 of the comb ll progressively increases in width from the smaller end of the comb towards the large end l3 thereof. From the lower edge of the back I2, a group of spaced apart teeth l4 depend having tapering side walls I5 and IS.

The back or body portion of the comb is formed with a portion ll extending beyond the edge of the body to which the teeth are aiiixed and laterally outwardly from the teeth. The inner surface or portion 18 of this extending portion I! is inclined at a relatively sharp angle toward the center of the toothed edge of the body, thereby forming knife-like ledge [9 extending continuously along the entire length of the teeth l4. As clearly shown in Figure 4 of the drawings, the ledge or marginal edge IQ of the extended portion I! defines a recess or space 23 between the inclined surface I 8 and the adjacent surfaces 21 of the teeth.

The improved fountain attachment l0 comprises a reservoir 22, a pair of clamping members 23 and a pair of hooks 24. The reservoir 22 is adapted to contain a liquid 25, such as a hair waving solution or the like and may be made of plastic, such as Lucite, or any other suitable material. The reservoir may be of any desired shape but in the present illustration is shown to be substantially oblong and has a longitudinally extending substantially flat rear wall 26, a longitudinally extending substantially fiat top wall 2'1, a longitudinally extending bottom wall 28 substantially arcuate in cross section, as is clear- 1y shown in Figure 4 of the drawings. A longitudinally extending front wall has a substantially fiat portion 29 which joins with the upper end of the bottom wall 28 and a curved portion 36 which joins with the forward edge of the top wall 27. The reservoir also has end walls 32 and 32 for closing in the ends thereof and each having edges corresponding in shape and joined to the rear top, bottom and front walls of the reservoir.

The top wall 21 has an elongated filling aperture 33 the outer end of which opens through the upper edge portion of the end wall 31 and the adjacent end of the top wall 21. The opposite side walls of the aperture 33 have guide grooves 35 therein for slidably receiving therein the ribs 35 of a closure member 36. The upper inner end portion of the member 36 is cut away to provide a portion 36a which will be received beneath the undercut area 31 of the top wall 2'! at the inner closed end of the aperture 33 when the end 361) of the member 36 engages the closed end wall 38 of the aperture 33. When the member 36 is in its completely closed position the upper surface 360 of the portion 36a will snugly engage the under face of the undercut area 3'1 of the top wall 27 to form a liquid tight seal.

The bottom wall 28 adjacent its juncture with the lower edge portion of the rear wall 26 has a plurality of longitudinally spaced apart outlet openings 39 extending therethrough. The bottom wall 28 curves upwardly and the axis of each of these openings 39 extends at an angle of the order of thirty degrees to the rear Wall 26 so that the openings face towards one side of the reservoir as is clear from Figure 4 of the drawings. The openings 39 are adapted to be masked by an elongated cover 40 of substantially arcuate shape in cross section to conform to the curvature of the bottom wall 28. The cover 43 is slidably supported and guided in its movements by a pair of guide members 4|, one of which is supported by the end wall 3! and the bottom wall 28 and the other of which is supported by the other end wall 32 and bottom wall 28.

Each guide member A comprises an arm 42 which extends from the bottom wall 28 and its end wall and a substantially arcuate shaped lug 33 mounted on the outer free end of the arm 12 in spaced substantially parallel relation to the outer face of the bottom wall 28. The cover it has its opposite end portions received in the space between the lugs 43 and the bottom wall 28 and a handle or knob 44 is formed on the cover for facilitating the moving of the cover from its closed to its open position. The closing movement of the cover will be limited by the shanks 2 1a of the hooks 24 and the opening movement of the cover will be limited by abutments or stops 35 which are formed on the upper portion of the bottom wall 28.

Each clamping member 23 has a portion 23a which extends rearwardly from the upper edge portion of the rear wall 26 adjacent one end thereof and a portion 23b extending rearwardly downwardly from the portion 23a in spaced apart substantially parallel relation to the outer face of the rear wall 25. Each hook 24 has a shank 24a depending from the lower edge of the rear wall 26 adjacent one end thereof and a rearwardly and upwardly extending hook portion 24b which slightly diverges from the shank 24a to accommodate the teeth 14 of the comb which progressively increase in thickness from their free ends towards their roots.

In the use of the device, the reservoir 22 will be slid upon the comb H from the small end thereof so that the clamping members 23 will engage over the back l2 of the comb and the hook portions 241) of the hooks 24 will engage over the lower portions of the teeth I4. The reservoir will be moved along the back l2 of the comb towards the large end [3 of the comb until the members 23 tightly grip the back 22 be tween themselves and the upper portion of the rear wall 26 of the reservoir as clearly shown in Figure 4 of the drawings. This action is possible since normally the spaces between the opposed faces of the rear wall 26 and the portions 23b of the members 23 are less than the width of the large end portion of the back ii of the comb. The portions 23a of the clamping members 23 extend from the rear wall 26 of the reservoir over and engage the upper edge of the back of the comb and the portions 2% of the clamping members each has one end attached to the free end of its portion 23a and extending downwardly therefrom in spaced relation to the rear wall of the reservoir. The rear wall 26 of the reservoir provides two continuous unbroken surfaced portions which cooperate with the portions 231) of the clamping members for frictionally clamping the back of the comb therebetween without altering the formation of the comb for mounting the reservoir to one side of the comb and disposing the outlet openings to one side only and adjacent to the teeth of the comb. At this time the remainder of the rear wall will contact the faces 46 of the adjacent teeth 53 and the shanks 2 1a and the hook portions 24?) may be of any desired width but should be wideenough to engage two adjacent teeth.

The reservoir 22 may be filled with any desired hair treating liquid by sliding the closure 38 to an open position, for example, as illustrated in Figure 2 of the drawings, and pouring the hair treating liquid through the filling .aperture 33 into the reservoir. The closure will then be slid to its fully closed position. The cover 48 will be opened and the hair of the person using the device will be combed downwardly with the teeth id which are disposed between the shanks Zia of the hooks 2s. As the hair is beingcom'bed the liquid 25 will flow through the outlet openings 39 in the form of drops ll and the curvature of the bottom wall'28 will cause the drops 41 to flow towards and upon the hair. The teeth M of the comb will spread the .individual hairs of the user so that the liquid can penetrate to the scalp of the user and the ledge is will evenly distribute the liquid to the hair and scalp during one downward combing operation. As is clear from Figures 1 and 4 of the drawings the ledge 19 is disposed above the outer face of the bottom wall 28 of the reservoir so that the liquid will fall upon the hair before the ledge as comes into play. As the comb is moved downwardly through the hair some of the liquid will travel up the inner faces of the teeth l4 until it reaches the sharply inclined surface 68 of the portion ii. The liquid will flow down the inclined surface 18 towards the ledge t9 and when it reaches that part of the surface is which is spaced from the adjacent surfaces 2i of the teeth by the space 2b the liquid will be free of the influence of the teeth and will be evenly distributed to the hair and scalp by the ledge I9.

The cover 4%] will be slid to its fullyclosed position in which all of the outlet openings 39 are completely masked and the comb. inverted to remove the reservoir from the area to which the hair solution has been applied. The treating of the hair may then be completed with the teeth of the comb which are clear of the reservoir 22.

It will be noted that the outer face of the bottom wall 23 is disposed at about the longitudinal center of the teeth it so that substantially half of the effective combing area of the teeth is available when the reservoir is mounted upon the comb. It will also be noted that except for the closure 36, the improved fountain attachment is all one piece so that there are not separate pieces which might become lost or misplaced and when the reservoir is mounted upon the comb a well balanced and easily handled unit is provided. Since the top wall 2? of the reservoir is fiat and the upper face of the portions 23a of the clamping members 23 are flush with the outer face of the top wall 27, the reservoir and comb. may be inverted and supported on a table or other supporting surface without danger of falling over.

When it is desired to use a different hair treating liquid, the liquid in the reservoir may be removed through the filling aperture 33, the reservoir washed out and the fresh liquid introduced into the reservoir. The fountain attachment may be easily removed from the comb by sliding it alongthe comb towards the small end of the comb andremoved therefrom.

It is obviousthat various changes and modifications may be made in the details of construction and design of the above specifically described embodiment ofthis invention without departing from the spirit thereof such changes and modifications being restricted only by the'scope of the following claims: Y I

What I claim is:

1. The combinationwith a hair comb comprising a back, teeth depending from said back, one side surface of the back extending beyond the bases of theteeth toward the free ends of the teeth and terminating in a thin ledge that extends along the length of the toothed portion of the back and which ledge is disposed in spaced relation to. the adjacent faces of the teeth, the opposite side surface of the extended portion of the heel; being inclined away from the ledge toward the base of the teeth, of a fountain attachment comprising a reservoir for liquid, means for mounting the reservoir upon the comb, said reservoir having openings for discharging the liquid upon the teeth of the comb, said ledge being positioned above the discharge openings, the liquid tending to travel up the sides of the teeth during the downward combing movement, said upward movement being arrested by inclined opposite side surface of the extended portion of the back of the comb, whereby the liquid will iiow down said inclined surface towards the ledge to the space between the ledge and adjacent surfaces of the teeth to be free of the teeth and to be evenly distributed to the hair and scalp by the ledge.

2. An improved fountain attachment for hair combs comprising an elongated reservoir for a hair solution adapted to be detachablym-ounted on a hair comb and having a longitudinally extending substantially fiat rear wall the upper portion of which is adapted to engage the. adjacent face of the back of the comb and the remainder of which is adapted to engage the adjacent faces of the teeth of the comb when the reservoir is mounted upon the comb, a pair of clamping members each having a portion extending rearwardly from the rear wall of the reservoir for engaging over the upper edge of the back of the comb and a portion extending downwardly from the rearwardly extending portion in spaced substantially parallel relation to the upper portion of said rear wall for clamping the comb therebetween, a pair of hooks depending from said rear wall for engaging over the free end portions of the teeth of the comb, said reservoir having a longitudinally extending substantially arcuate bottom wall which curves downwardly and rearwardly towards the lower edge of said rear wall, said bottom wall having a plurality of longitudinally spaced apart outlet openings positioned adjacent to the lower edge of said'rear wall, a pair of guide members on the opposite end portions of said bottom wall and spaced therefrom, a cover movably mounted be--v tween said guide members and said bottom wall for masking and unmasking said outlet openings, a knob on said cover, stop means on said reservoir for limiting themovement of said cover, said reservoir-having a substantially flat top wall upon which'the reservoir is adapted to be supported when not in use, said top Wall having an elongated filling aperture having one end opening through one end thereof and through one end wall of said reservoir, the opposite side walls of said aperture having guide grooves therein, and a closure for said aperture having ribs on its opposite sides to be received by said grooves, said closure having a portion at its inner end for extending below the top of the reservoir and engaging the inner face of the area thereof adjacent the closed end of the aperture to prevent leaking of the solution between the inner end of the closure and the closed end of the aperture.

- 3; An improved fountain attachment for a hair comb comprising a reservoir for a liquid and-having outlet openings for the liquid, and means for detachably mounting the reservoir on the comb comprising a clamping member on the reservoir and having a portion spaced from the reservoir and cooperating therewith to frictionally grip the back of the comb, and at least one hook for engaging over the lower end portions of the teeth of the comb.

4. An improved fountain attachment for a hair comb comprising a reservoir for a liquid and having a wall adapted to be positioned close to the teeth of the comb when the reservoir is attached to the comb, said wall having at least one discharge opening for the liquid adapted to be positioned close to the teeth of the comb when the reservoir is attached to the comb, a pair of cover supporting guide members each comprising an arm on said reservoir and a lug mounted on each of said arms in spaced relation to the reservoir to provide a space between said arms and the reservoir, a cover for masking and unmasking said liquid discharge opening and having its opposite end portions received in said spaces and supported and guided by said lugs during the movement of the cover to and from its masking and unmasking positions and supported by said lugs when the cover is in its positions of rest, and means on said reservoir for attaching the reservoir to the hair comb.

5. An improved fountain attachment for a hair comb comprising a reservoir for liquid and having a plura 'ty of openings adapted to discharge the liquid upon the teeth of the comb and upon the hair of a person when the reservoir is mounted upon the comb, said reservoir having a filling aperture therein, the opposite side walls of said aperture having guide grooves therein and one end wall of said aperture being undercut, a closure for said aperture and having ribs on its opposite sides adapted to be received by said grooves to permit sliding movement of said closure to open and close said aperture, one end portion of said closure being of a reduced thickness to be received under the undercut end Wall of said aperture to provide a liquid tight seal therebetween, and means on said reservoir for detachably mounting said reservoir upon the comb so that said discharge openings will be in a position to discharge the liquid from the reservoir upon the teeth of the comb and upon the hair of the person.

6. The combination with a hair comb comprising a back, teeth depending from said back, one side surface of the back extending beyond the bases of the teeth toward the free ends of the teeth and terminating in a thin ledge that extends along the length of the toothed portion of the back and which ledge is disposed in spaced relation to the adjacent faces of the teeth, the opposite side surface of the extended portion of the back being inclined away from the ledge toward the base of the teeth, of a fountain attachment comprising a reservoir for liquid and having openings for discharging the liquid upon the teeth of the comb, means for mounting the reservoir on the opposite side of the teeth of the comb to that on which the ledge is located so that said openings will discharge the liquid upon said opposite side of the teeth, the liquid tending to travel up the sides of the teeth during the downward combing movement, said upward movement being arrested by said inclined opposite side surface of the extended portion of the back of the comb, whereby the liquid will flow down said inclined surface towards the ledge to the spaceibetween the ledge and adjacent sur- 8 faces of the teeth to be free of the teeth and to be evenly distributed to the hair and scalp by the ledge.

'7. An improved fountain attachment for hair combs comprising a reservoir for a liquid and having outlet openings for the liquid, said reservoir having a wall adapted to engage the adja cent face of the back of the comb when the reservoir is attached to the comb, and at least one clamping member attached directly to the wall of said reservoir and having a portion one end of which is attached directly to said wall and extending from the wall of the reservoir and adapted to extend over and engage the upper edge of the back of the comb and a portion having one end attached to the free end of said first portionand extending downwardly therefrom in spaced relation to said wall of the reservoir for frictionally clamping the back of the comb therebetween.

8. An improved fountain attachment for a hair comb comprising a reservoir for a liquid and having an upwardly curved bottom wall provided with outlet openings for the liquid opening facing towards one side of the reservoir, and clamping means extending from the opposite side only of the reservoir and having a continuous unbroken surfaced portion cooperating therewith and adapted when the reservoir is attached to the comb to frictionally grip the back of the comb between said reservoir and said clamping means without altering the formation of the comb for mounting the reservoir to one side of the comb and disposing the outlet openings to one side only and adjacent to the teeth of the comb.

9. An improved fountain attachment for a hair comb as claimed in claim 8 characterized by the fact that the top of the reservoir is substantially 10. An improved fountain attachment for a hair comb comprising a reservoir for a liquid and having a wall adapted to be positioned close to the teeth of the comb when the reservoir is attached to the comb, said wall having at least one discharge opening for the liquid adapted to be positioned close to the teeth of the comb when the reservoir is attached to the comb, a pair of cover supporting guide members each comprising an arm on said reservoir and a lug mounted on each of said arms in spaced relation to the reservoir to provide a space between said arms and the reservoir, a cover for masking and unmasking said liquid discharge opening and having its opposite end portions received in said spaces and supported and guided by said lugs during the movement of the cover to and from its masking and unmasking positions and supported by said lugs when the cover is in its positions of rest, means on said reservoir for attaching the reservoir to the hair comb, and at least i one abutment on said reservoir for limiting the movement of said cover in one direction, a portion of said mounting means being disposed in the path of travel of said cover to limit the movement of the cover in the opposite direction.

BENEDETTI DI ZAZZO.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 754,705 Reynolds Mar. 15, 1904 1,923,316 Leland Aug. 22, 1933 2,270,530 Kirschenbaum Jan. 20, 1942 2,565,889 Schroer Aug. 28, 1951 

